Using perceptions as evidence to improve conservation and environmental management

The conservation community is increasingly focusing on the monitoring and evaluation of management, governance, ecological, and social considerations as part of a broader move toward adaptive management and evidence‐based conservation. Evidence is any information that can be used to come to a conclusion and support a judgment or, in this case, to make decisions that will improve conservation policies, actions, and outcomes. Perceptions are one type of information that is often dismissed as anecdotal by those arguing for evidence‐based conservation. In this paper, I clarify the contributions of research on perceptions of conservation to improving adaptive and evidence‐based conservation. Studies of the perceptions of local people can provide important insights into observations, understandings and interpretations of the social impacts, and ecological outcomes of conservation; the legitimacy of conservation governance; and the social acceptability of environmental management. Perceptions of these factors contribute to positive or negative local evaluations of conservation initiatives. It is positive perceptions, not just objective scientific evidence of effectiveness, that ultimately ensure the support of local constituents thus enabling the long‐term success of conservation. Research on perceptions can inform courses of action to improve conservation and governance at scales ranging from individual initiatives to national and international policies. Better incorporation of evidence from across the social and natural sciences and integration of a plurality of methods into monitoring and evaluation will provide a more complete picture on which to base conservation decisions and environmental management.     

Human maternal uniparental disomy for chromosome 16 and fetal development

Two severely growth-retarded fetuses found to have maternal uniparental disomy (UPD) for chromosome 16 and trisomy 16 placental mosaicism both had an unfavourable outcome. Antenatally, the first case was complicated by an unexplained raised maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein concentration, preterm premature rupture of the membranes, and growth retardation detectable at 21 weeks' gestation, whilst the other had an unexplained raised maternal serum human chorionic gonadotrophin level, a two-vessel cord on ultrasound, and cessation of growth at 25 weeks. At post-mortem, both babies had an imperforate anus. Fetal maternal UPD may explain the poor outcome that occurs in some cases of confined placental mosaicism for chromosome 16 and is also associated with specific fetal abnormalities.     

Parasite faunas,testosterone and secondary sexual traits in male red-winged blackbirds

Summary We examined associations among parasite infections, secondary sexual traits and testosterone in male red-winged blackbirds sampled at the start of the breeding season. Parasites quantified included ectoparasitic lice and mites and endoparasitic blood protozoans, nematodes, trematodes and cestodes. Secondary sexual traits that we quantified included body size, epaulet size and color, song repertoire size and song switching rate, and behavioral responses to male and female models. Overall we found few significant associations between parasites and secondary sexual traits, between secondary sexual traits and testosterone, or between parasites and testosterone. In addition, most parasite taxa appeared to infect birds independently, although the low prevalence (<50%) of many of the parasites meant that our sample sizes were too small to detect weak associations. Our most promising results were obtained for ectoparasitic mites, which tended to occur on birds uninfected with other parasites, on birds with longer epaulets, and on birds with higher levels of testosterone. Epaulet length and testosterone are both probable correlates of dominance in this species. Further research will be required to determine whether there is a causal link between the immunosuppressive effects of testosterone and the mite infections, and between testosterone, epaulet length and male mating success. Correspondence to: P. Weatherhead     

BIOLEFF: three databases on air pollution effects on vegetation

Three databases on air pollution effects on vegetation were developed by storing bibliographic and abstract data for technical literature on the subject in a free-form database program, 'askSam'. Approximately 4 000 journal articles have been computerized in three separate database files: BIOLEFF, LICHENS and METALS. BIOLEFF includes over 2 800 articles on the effects of approximately 25 gaseous and particulate pollutants on over 2 000 species of vascular plants. LICHENS includes almost 400 papers on the effects of gaseous and heavy metal pollutants on over 735 species of lichens and mosses. METALS includes over 465 papers on the effects of heavy metals on over 830 species of vascular plants. The combined databases include articles from about 375 different journals spanning 1905 to the present. Picea abies and Phaseolus vulgaris are the most studied vascular plants in BIOLEFF, while Hypogymnia physodes is the most studied lichen species in LICHENS. Ozone and sulfur dioxide are the most studied gaseous pollutants with about two thirds of the records in BIOLEFF. The combined size of the databases is now about 5.5 megabytes.     

Why should I be generous when I have valued and accessible alternatives? Alternative exchange partners and OCB

An Erratum has been published for this article in Journal of Organizational Behavior 26(7) 2005, 873. Previous research on the relationship between alternative employment opportunities and cooperation has neglected the distinction between evaluations and restrictions. Thus, one cannot analyze the relationship between attractiveness of alternative employment opportunities and organizational citizenship behaviors (OCB) under different levels of perceived ease of finding alternative employment. In a pilot study with N = 149 German employees, we confirm the proposed distinction with confirmatory factor analyses. Based on power‐dependence theory and rational choice models, we predict that under high ease the relationship between attractiveness and OCB should be more strongly negative than under conditions of low ease. In addition, we hypothesize that the interaction between attractiveness and ease should be greater for OCB than for task performance because task performance is exchanged in a relationship with an enforceable, binding contract, while OCB is voluntarily. Results from moderated multiple regression analysis on N = 86 German professional–supervisor dyads support our prediction for a negative relationship between attractiveness and OCB under high ease. Under low ease, we find a positive relationship between attractiveness and OCB. Moreover, there was no relationship with the interaction and task performance. Implications of the findings both for extra‐role and job mobility theory formation and research are discussed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.